Access to Links Avenue is restricted while a signalised pedestrian crossing is installed. Photo / John Borren
A contentious road trial in Mount Maunganui that was scheduled to last four months now has no end date in sight.
The Links Avenue cul-de-sac trial that began in March closes off the street between Solway Place and Concord Ave to all traffic except buses, bikes and authorised vehicles.
Two bus lanes have been installed in the closed section and anyone using them illegally is fined $150. In the first two months of the trial close to 17,000 fines were issued, equating to around $2.5 million in revenue.
Tauranga City Council's Director of Transport Brendan Bisley told Local Democracy Reporting the current trial would remain until there was an alternative layout that could be implemented to ensure the road remained safe.
"If the restriction was simply removed, traffic volumes would rapidly increase back to the 7500-9000 vehicles per day and the street would then return to being unsafe."
Links Ave was classified as a residential street and a safe volume of vehicles was between 2000-2500 per day.
Pāpāmoa Residents and Ratepayers Association President Philip Brown labelled the trial "absolutely shocking" traffic management.
"It is horrendous for the people living there," he said.
Jacqui, who only wanted to be known by her first name, lives on Links Ave near the cul-de-sac.
She said the trial was "really annoying" and her family were still reluctant to visit her because of the extra distance they had to travel.
"I'm still living a lonely life with no visitors.
"I have gotten used to travelling the extra distance, it's just super inconvenient and restrictive," Jacqui said.
This was worsened by the temporary reduction of Golf Road to one lane to install a signalised pedestrian crossing.
For the next two weeks, Links Avenue residents can't access their street from the Maunganui Road end of Golf Road, and instead must travel to Spur Avenue.
Jacqui said it took her an extra 30 minutes to get home on Monday.
Fellow resident Teri Logie said the drive to Bayfair Shopping Centre used to take seven minutes - since the closure, it took 20 to 30 minutes.
The trip from Links Avenue to Bayfair was now 4 kilometres instead of 500 metres.
"It's making me shop in places I don't want to shop. I don't really like shopping at the more expensive supermarkets, especially now, and it's cut me off from my doctor," said Logie.
"It's a pain. It's nice having the road quiet, but it's untenable.
"I'm pretty disheartened, to be honest."
A community panel has been tasked with solving Links Avenue's traffic issues – something the Council has been unable to do without derision.
So far, nine members have been appointed to the community led panel. They are looking for three or four more members.
In June, Tauranga's commissioners decided to set up the panel in response to backlash from the community.
A 5600-signature-strong petition calling for the fines to be refunded and the trial stopped was presented to Council in May. Their response was to continue the trial and to not refund fines, but set to up the panel.
Commissioner Shadrach Rolleston told Local Democracy Reporting the commissioners were thinking about "participatory democracy" for a while before the decision was made to establish a Links Avenue panel.
"It does need to be a joint solution," Rolleston said.
"I don't think we can afford for this particular issue just to be led and directed by Council.
Rolleston acknowledged there were "some quite heated views" from the community about the trial.
He said these were particularly around the inconvenience of people having to travel a lot further, and for those coming from Pāpāmoa that had previously used the road as a thoroughfare.
"We're aware of all the issues," said Rolleston.
"We do want to work with a community to find a solution, hopefully a long-term solution that actually deals with the issue.
"We thought it was an idea for us to work with the community and share the burden, but also share the solution, if we can get to that point."
The parameters the panel must work to were that the solution must be safe, reduce traffic and provide for the bus service, Rolleston said.
Any solution needed to go through a safety audit and the commissioners would make the final decision, he said.
When asked how effective the panel would be at providing a solution for a difficult traffic problem, Rolleston said they would need some specialist advice.
The Council provided the panel with an independent facilitator, and any data or expertise they may need, such as a traffic engineer, would be available.
He said the panel would need to "try and balance out" the priorities and needs of residents with the technical advice to come up with a solution.
"When it comes to working through a particular problem or issue compromises are going to have to be made."
Logie was dubious whether the Council would listen to the panel because they "hadn't from the get go".
She said they didn't listen to the parents that initially wanted the bus lane removed from Links Avenue in 2017 or to the Arataki Community Liaison Group and hadn't consulted the community about the trial.
"They said 'we will consult' and then when they consulted, they stood in front of us and said, 'we're going to do this'.
"It's been a most distressing episode. Just the fact that they don't listen. They say they're consulting, but they don't and they don't listen," Logie said.
Brown said the panel was "hobbled before it starts" and the Council needed to listen to its recommendations.
"Whatever this committee decides, it's got to be taken seriously and put into the mix for the final solution."
Rolleston said they were hoping for a mixture of views and opinions from the panel.
A Council spokesperson said there were a combination of people on the panel who lived on Links Avenue or the surrounding streets, of different age groups and backgrounds, who were volunteering their time.
These people were invited to the panel because they had previously contacted Council about Links Avenue, said the spokesperson.
Bisley said the panel would be developing alternative solutions for the road and would report these to Council.
"If a solution is accepted by Council, it could be implemented and the current trial removed."
Brown was critical of the lack of representation for people who travel through the area, mainly those from Pāpāmoa.
"They're as much players in there as the local residents. We're all equal players," Brown said.
"The perspective of local residents is quite different to the perspective of other people."
In response, Rolleston said: "It's the people that live in that particular community that are most affected".
"Ideally we do want local because it does need to be a local solution."
With the members yet to be appointed, Rolleston said they would be guided by the panel about who the most appropriate people to include were.
The Council also has a survey running asking for people's views on the trial, cul-de-sac location and traffic management on Links Avenue.
It was sent to the directly affected residents and is available on the Council's website.
The results would be made available to the community panel and presented to Council.
- Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.
People aged 60-plus accounted for 55% of all house fire deaths over the past 5 years.